Northampton will find out in the coming weeks whether they will be able to retain their two England Saxons outside-halves, Stephen Myler and Shane Geraghty, who are both out of contract at the end of the season. Myler and Geraghty have jostled for position in the past two seasons, with the Northampton director of rugby, Jim Mallinder, opting for continuity and giving one an extended run in the side rather than adopting a horses‑for‑courses policy.

Geraghty is in favour having started the past four Premiership matches, but Myler was preferred for the second half of last season and the picture has been complicated by the arrival of the 20‑year‑old Joe Ford from Leeds in the summer.

"We have three young English 10s who all have masses of potential," said Mallinder. "Only time will tell if we can keep them all happy but I would rather be in our position than anyone else's. It is up to them all to put their hands up and play well. Players will think about moving to get regular rugby but we want a strong squad so, if we have injuries or Test call-ups, we have someone who can do well for the team."

Northampton are hoping Chris Ashton, their England wing, will return to action on Friday, when Castres visit Franklin's Gardens in the first round of the Heineken Cup. Ashton has been absent since he hobbled off in the win against Bath a fortnight ago. "He was in a boot early on with a bruised foot," said Mallinder, "but he's been jogging on it for the last couple of days. He's making good progress and he should be fit for the Heineken Cup."

The Saints laboured to a 27-21 victory over Exeter on Saturday, which featured a spirited fightback from the Chiefs, who scored two tries in the last quarter of an hour, having trailed 27-9. They go into the two-week break for Europe second to London Irish in the Premiership.

Marler's in tune for Quins

Harlequins, celebrating their second Premiership success in eight days after the 23-12 victory over Newcastle, hope their lock George Robson, will return for his first game of the season next Sunday, the difficult Amlin Challenge Cup trip to big-spending Bayonne. Conor O'Shea, the Harlequins director of rugby, is under no illusions about the task of facing French clubs in Europe and plans to send a strong side across the Channel. "They've just increased their playing budget by £3.5m which is getting on for the entire salary cap here, so it'll be difficult," he said. O'Shea has, though, a priceless asset in the 20-year-old prop Joe Marler who shone in a dominant scrum on Saturday in only his second Premiership start. "Joe has a heck of a lot of potential and that famous edge that people talk about. A lot of people will be pushing him and we have to handle him carefully." Who will be the first to say Marler is composed?

Leinster's high five

A record Magners League crowd of more than 50,000 saw Leinster defeat Munster at the Aviva Stadium with a late Brian O'Driscoll try. It was Leinster's fifth consecutive win over their rivals, their best sequence in the fixture since the 1930s. Ospreys warmed up for the visit to Jonny Wilkinson's Toulon on Saturday with a 21-18 victory over Scarlets in a fiercely fought Welsh derby in Llanelli, a rousing match which showed that, when it comes to intensity and physicality, the Premiership is not in a league of its own.